Two killed in Baltimore overnight; six slain to start June

Justin Fenton, The Baltimore Sun

Standing on the sidewalk in Reservoir Hill where his son was shot to death Monday night, Dale Webb Sr. tried to channel his grief into constructive things, like getting the locks changed for the other tenants who live in the home.

More than 14 hours after the fatal shooting of Dale Webb Jr., 35, police remained inside the home, though the shooting occurred on the street. That frustrated the elder Webb, a 68-year-old retired state employee with the Department of Business and Economic Development, who was calling the mayor's office and Police Department in an attempt to get relief.

His son was one of two people killed Monday night in Baltimore, bringing to five the number of homicides over the first two days of June. Two others were shot and wounded Monday night, and another man was found dead early Tuesday. Over the past 30 days, 26 people have been killed in Baltimore.

Webb's shooting happened about 11:30 p.m. in the 2200 block of Brookfield Ave. Webb's family said witnesses told them that the subcontractor and father of two was being dropped off by a friend to let out his dogs when he was ambushed by four people. He ran across a field after being shot, and was found on Linden Avenue.

"He's been in trouble," Dale Webb Sr. said. Court records show minor drug charges as recently as 2011, none of which resulted in convictions.

But he said his son had been doing much better, and may have been targeted. "What's the chance of four to five guys jumping somebody coming out of an apartment?" he said.

Less than two miles away, red balloons were affixed to a light pole in the 3700 block of Reisterstown Road in Park Circle, where 28-year-old Chealyn "Che" Mitchell was killed just after midnight.

Police said Mitchell, whose last known address was in the 3600 block of Forest Park Drive, was sitting in the block when two unknown persons approached and fired several shots.

On the steps of a nearby house, Steve Reed, 53, sat in disbelief. With a can of Bud Ice nearby, he said he had known Mitchell 16 years, after first meeting with him through a youth mentoring program. He came home to the crime scene Monday night and realized it was Mitchell who had been shot.

"I'm still not grasping it," Reed said. "I know when I get back to myself, I'm going to break down, because I loved that kid.'

Mitchell's killing occurred just hours after and a few blocks away from where another man was shot to death earlier Monday, around 3:30 p.m., in the 3700 block of Cottage Ave. That victim was not identified by police Tuesday.

A 40-year-old man was found dead in a grassy area in the 1400 block of Fillmore Street around 6:26 a.m. Tuesday, police said. No suspect information was released, nor was the victim's identity, pending next-of-kin notification.

Police have not provided any possible motives or suspect descriptions in any of the cases.

Violence has been on the upswing in the city in recent weeks. The year started off with 27 homicides in January, an unusually high number for that month. But the next three months brought a historic lull, including just seven killings in March — tying an all-time low for a single month in the city.